126 Part 1 (1/2)
The moment the old man finally left the inn, three strangers that were previously joking and chatting with others suddenly stopped everything and left as well. They were joined by two others that were in the vicinity of the inn. Nothing in their outfits nor their equipment could link them all together, so much that even the most cautious observers could only guess and not conclude. After all, if the most famous General of Massalia could truly walk in the streets without anyone following and protecting him, it would be shameful for the very king of this nation.
But, if someone was capable of learning who those five humans were, he would be extremely shocked. Not by the fact that even without looking at each other or sending hand messages, they were capable of communicating. And even less by their capacity to easily merge with the crowd, not appearing to tail the old noble at all. But by the fact that they belonged to the Organization, and the fact that the safety of the protector of the North was maintained by criminals and outlaws.
Looking at the nice looking couple that bypassed him, Lord Darkwater, of his real name Remy Rattle, smiled at the clueless knights around him. Even if they seemed to be in a hurry, they were on high alert, making the common people baffled by their presence. But not even once did they noticed the shadows tracing them. Looking with a bit more attention at their uniform, he noticed the emblem of the Sword Saint. ”Maybe I should teach them a trick or two ...”
”What is it, grandpa?” His voice was so soft that only the little girl nearby heard it. Pinching her cheeks, he finally picked her up afterward, noticing the impatient stares of the knights. ”Nothing little bunny. But like I told you, youngsters trying to make me move. And what do I hate the most?”
”To walk outside!” She nearly shouted that sentence, grinning happily. Their house was quite big, but besides the servants and tall adults, she had not a single friend of her age. So, each time she wanted to go outside, she had to solve one puzzle from her grandfather. And recently, he had been making them incredibly difficult, proving that he truly didn't want to left his comfy home.
”That's right, that's right.” Hearing the strange discussion between the two, the leader of the knights could only look helplessly at the speed of the old man. At this point, he was willing to bet that even the oldest cow could move faster than this, or maybe the fastest turtle. But knowing the identity of the one he was bringing in, he had no choice but to suffer in silence. After ten minutes like that, and without any incident, the group stopped, blocked by a line of soldiers.
An entire area of houses had been requisitioned for this, making it off limits for all the civilians nearby. The security was extremely important, and at the same time, numerous armies each controlled their own locations. The yellow emblems of the Synnada Empire were already visible when they arrived inside the perimeter. Next to them, some elven bows could be seen stored inside some crates.
If the real armies were not yet here, each nation had already sent some emissaries to ease the process. No one wanted to find out there was a lack of food or arrows only the day before the assault. With that in mind, the cooperation between the nations was... tensed, to say the least. Each faction had their own allies and enemies, making some discussion particularly heated. And the presence of some special individuals would not reduce them at all.
Like right now, if before, the three officers of the Synnada Empire were talking peacefully with someone from the Massalia Kingdom, their stares turned hateful in a blink of an eye. Spotting the very man responsible for the most terrible defeat in the history of their country, their hands instinctively reached their sabers. Only the same reaction from the knights prevented them from rushing at the old man to cut him in half.
”SO SCARY!” The little girl was in shock, suffering from the intense pressure from those officers. She was, after all, only a child, and because of this and her remark, the tension was slightly reduced. While the men from the desert were still pondering whether they should die trying to kill the target of their hate, someone put his massive hands on their shoulders. Feeling the inescapable grip, they could only turn to see an unrefined brute looking at them.
”SWO ... SWORD SAINT! We ... eh ... farewell!” They did not dwindle any longer, knowing that they couldn't kill Lord Darkwater anymore. If before, it would be a sacrifice, it now became a suicide. The old man couldn't be harmed when the first swordsman of the kingdom was present. Looking at the fleeing officers, the later was not even smiling. After all, they were supposed to be allies in the end.
”Hey brat, you brought what I asked?” His ears were slightly shivering when he heard that. As for the knights nearby, they all looked the sky, wondering if the clouds were always so beautiful during the day. The number of people that could call Idhrenil Gwendhir a brat could be held on one hand. Maybe even two fingers only, namely the two old generals. Looking at the pair of old and young foxes that were smiling widely, he reluctantly gave the old man the bag he was holding.
”Great, great. Thanks a lot for this, now, little bunny, did I ever told you about ...” He triumphantly brought the small bottle that was inside the bag up.” ... THIS!” On the other hand, the little girl that was visibly expecting something else looked a bit disappointed. After all, it was just a bottle filled with something pink in it, she could not make any sense of that.
”A bottle?” Shaking his head, Remi Darkwater looked sad. ”Remember the last summer when you were desperately trying to make me buy one of those, only to find out they were tasteless?” Hearing this, the little human did not even wait for the end of that sentence to grab it. Her eyes were looking at it like it was a treasure. The massive and respected Sword Saint was looking weirdly at that spectacle, while the knights were still wondering what was happening.